Sunday, November 10, 2013

Lord of the Rings & Us

Hi! Okay, so the last time I posted I promised to write about guy/girl relationships. I still plan on doing that. We're actually heading to Florida on the 20th, so I am planning on re-reading I Kissed Dating Goodbye and It's (Not That) Complicated. I'm going to take notes and plan some posts on the drive down there. Sometimes I think I enjoy the drive to Florida as much as I enjoy the time we have there. The Starbuck's breaks, the books on CD, listening to music like all the time, and counting palm trees. Well, that last thing might not happen this year. ;)

Anyway, I wanted to write a post just so I could geek out a little bit. About what, you ask? Well, if you haven't already figured that out... Lord of the Rings. AG and I are fans of the books (although technically I haven't completely finished the last of the trilogy) so we decided it was time to watch the movies. So far we've watched the first two movies, and are planning on watching the last one tonight. Although this is totally uncharacteristic of me, I must admit that the movies brought the books to life. I mean, though I loved the story and the characters when I read the books (Aragorn's still my favorite character), they weren't the type of read I just could not put down. I reeeally wanted them to be, but they just weren't. However, after watching the first two movies, I am totally reading the books again. 'Definitely my favorite books/story ever. Definitely.

Okay, so I could talk about the cast and the characters forever, but I probably need to get to the "meat" of what I was going to write about. If you ever start a conversation with me, know that I will not shut up if you bring up Lord of the Rings. Just a warning. :D

All that aside, I had a revelation when I was watching those movies. (See, Mom! We should watch more moves. We get insight from them!) ;D I started wondering why I was so wrapped up in the story line and what was so captivating about it. I realized that as humans, we have an inherent desire for a good ending. I guess that's kind of a duh thing, but it just kind of hit me. Part of it, though, is how we want Good to triumph. If those movies ended with the triumph of the evil side, no one would watch them. Who, while watching LOTR would cheer on the bad guys? It's just common sense that the Orcs are nasty and evil. No one would want them to take the ring and kill the Fellowship. Why? Why are we so wrapped up in the hope and in the need for the Good to be victorious? I realized that it is another bit of evidence for the existence of a Moral Law, and ultimately, a God. If there was no Moral Law, like people are trying to promote, then there wouldn't be a Good side, let alone would we passionately desire a good ending. I'm working on Ethics right now in my worldview course, and this was totally ethics! Of course there has to be a Law somewhere in us that tells us what is right and what the Good even is! If there wasn't, then what's with our infatuation with the "Good" side? What's with our longing for happy endings? Okay, my rant is finished. Now, I'm going to wrap it up with a cliché statement. 'Cause those are always good. ;)

As Christians, we have the ultimate happy ending. When the Good really does triumph, we're going to heaven – the best ending. We will be wedded to Christ Who gave his life so that His bride could be dressed in the whitest, purest wedding clothes – the only way we could ever hope to reach a happy ending. In Revelation, John talks about what Christ's bride will look like and it almost makes me cry when I read it. "I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband." I guess this especially speaks to me since I'm a girl, but the fact that Christ loves me – loves His church like that fills me with gratitude and joy. If He went through the cross and drank the cup of God's wrath to clothe me in white so that I could be His bride forever, then what am I doing getting distracted and forgetting to read my Bible and forgetting to pray?Another verse that goes along with this theme is Hebrews 12:2. "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Holy cow. Jesus didn't die on the cross only because He knew He had to. He did it for the joy. The joy He would get from clothing His bride in splendor and purity. The joy He would get from marrying us – His church at the end of time. That joy He'd get from seeing her descend from God – so beautiful and radiant I don't even dare to imagine it. And it would all be because of His sacrifice – His death. That death He endured for the joy set before Him. Every time I think about that, my mind gets blown.
Well, once again, that post got way longer than I intended it to. That seems to happen a lot with me. That's the problem with people who like to write, I guess. I'm not always the best at conversation, but when it comes to writing stuff, it's like, watch out!

Okay, well, I'm going to wrap this thing up. I've really got to work on my long-windy-ness. :) I hope you have a good week! xo, Ella

2
comments:

Thanks so much for your lovely comment! I am now blogging at This Girl Writes (http://www.thisgirlwritesprose.blogspot.com/) if you'd like to follow along! :) Have a great day and I so appreciate your taking the time to comment! xo, Ella